May 2015

Hillary Clinton courts Silicon Valley

Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, and other Republican presidential hopefuls have vowed this is the year their party can tap a rich vein of support in Silicon Valley -- but the tech industry’s political elite may have another candidate in mind.

In 2008, Hillary Clinton wasn’t the industry’s favorite Democrat -- that crown belonged to Barack Obama. But as Clinton begins her 2016 fight and prepares for a major California swing, she’s laying the groundwork to dominate an industry and a region that remains strongly liberal, especially on social issues. Clinton has started speaking publicly about tech issues, from science education to the challenges faced by women in tech fields.

Campaign Coverage via Snapchat Could Shake Up the 2016 Elections

Snapchat, America’s fastest-growing smartphone app, hired Peter Hamby, a political reporter for CNN, to lead its nascent news division. Snapchat has said little about its plans. But a couple of things are clear: A company known for enabling teenagers in various states of undress to send disappearing selfies to each other is getting into politics. And with well over 100 million users, a huge swath of whom are in the United States and between the ages of 18 and 31, its potential to shake up the next election is considerable. “There is no harder riddle to solve in politics than reaching young Americans who are very interested in the future of their country but don’t engage with traditional news,” wrote Dan Pfeiffer, a former senior adviser to President Obama. “Snapchat may have just made it a whole lot easier to solve this riddle.”

No Broken Heart for Comcast

[Commentary] Comcast has been party to three of the 20 biggest failed takeovers of the past two decades. The latest of those was with Time Warner Cable, called off last month as regulatory scrutiny mounted. The combined firm would have controlled over half of the US broadband market and close to a third of pay-TV households. What comes next may become clearer when Comcast management discusses first-quarter results on May 4. Analysts polled by FactSet see the company earning 74 cents a share, up from 71 cents a year earlier. As for what management will do next, talk of buying something might seem at the very least premature, and even like the triumph of hope over experience.

President Obama Taps Tribble for National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee

President Barack Obama announced his intent to appoint Guy “Bud” Tribble to be a member of the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee. Tribble is Vice President of Software Technology at Apple, a position he has held since 2002.

Before rejoining Apple in 2002, Dr. Tribble served as Vice President of Engineering at Eazel Inc from 2000 to 2001. Prior to that, he served as Chief Technology Officer for the Sun-Netscape Alliance. In 1985, Dr. Tribble helped found NeXT Computer, where he served as Vice President of Software Engineering until 1992. He was part of the original Macintosh design team in the 1980s. Dr. Tribble received a BA from the University of California, San Diego and an MD and PhD from the University of Washington, Seattle.

The Advisory Committee’s mission is to advise the President on the availability and reliability of telecommunication services.

Problems with FCC Advisory Committees

I’ve raised quite a few issues with the current operations of the FCC, especially the workings of the so-called 8th Floor, and the critical need to improve transparency and accountability. Let me add another area in need of review and reform: the FCC’s advisory committees (and councils). Specifically, I believe changes are necessary in such areas as the appointment process, internal operations, work assignments, reporting requirements, staff involvement, and implementation of recommendations. In other words, a top-to-bottom examination and overhaul is in order.

A fundamental problem with the current workings of the non-statutorily set advisory committees, however, is that the Chairman’s office has absolute and complete power over every aspect of their existence. The membership, selection of the committee chairs, timing of any reports and/or recommendations, and all other aspects of their operations are determined solely by the Chairman. Given our recent practices, I also worry whether participation by some outside parties is actually truly voluntary. The independence of the advisory committees must also be examined. In the end, the opinions and operations of the Commission’s advisory committees are only valid if the Commission allows them to offer independent, unbiased recommendations on the issues they consider. Failure to fix the problems identified above affects the integrity of these committees and raises unnecessary questions regarding their input.

Twenty Years after the Birth of the Modern Internet, US Policies Continue to Help the Internet Grow and Thrive

[Commentary] These are six key policies that I believe have contributed to the strength of the US digital economy and provide a model for developing countries, such as those that participated in the United State Telecommunications Training Institute course, to consider as they seek to grow their economies.

Trusting the Private Sector: This is particularly powerful as we are celebrate the 20th anniversary of the US decision to take a network it had originated and trust it to the private sector to innovate and take the Internet to the next level.
Connecting Users: The US government has invested heavily in supporting broadband access and penetration with a range of programs aimed at supporting the deployment of broadband. NTIA’s BroadbandUSA is an initiative to support community broadband projects and to promote broadband deployment and adoption.
Empowering Users: US policies have empowered users to access knowledge, communicate, express their opinions and launch small businesses to reach global audiences.
Protecting Platforms: US law provides strong protections for online platforms from undue interference and regulation. A critical example of US law is “Section 230” of the Communications Act as amended in 1996, which protects online platforms against claims arising from hosting information posted by users and other third parties.
Strong and Balanced Intellectual Property Regime: The United States is dedicated to the protection of intellectual property to foster and protect creativity. The United States supports a balanced approach to intellectual property that includes an emphasis on enforcement and protection but also recognizes limitations and “fair use.”
Reliance on Multistakeholder Policy Approaches: Throughout all of our work, we have looked to multistakeholder consensus-based processes to keep the Internet and its innovation moving forward. NTIA, working with other parts of the Department of Commerce through the Internet Policy Task Force, has supported multistakeholder efforts focused on the domain name system, privacy, intellectual property and cybersecurity.

[John B. Morris, Jr., is Associate Administrator and Director of Internet Policy, Office of Policy Analysis and Development]

Public Knowledge Rejects Unfounded Industry Petitions Against Net Neutrality

The Internet service providers argue that the Federal Communications Commission must delay implementation of its Open Internet Order because the Order protects consumers too much. Respecting the privacy of subscribers, they argue, constitutes an ‘irreparable harm’ that warrants the extraordinary relief of a stay request. Petitioners also object that the FCC requirement that any interconnection agreement must be just and reasonable rather than the product of market power creates ‘uncertainty’ and so gravely undermines their ability to conduct business that they deserve a stay.

It speaks volumes that Petitioners regard respecting subscriber privacy as ‘irreparable harm,’ and are so uncertain whether they are exercising market power when they demand companies like Netflix pay tolls for interconnection, that the ‘uncertainty’ would disrupt their business. Likewise, the objection by Petitioners to the ‘general conduct’ rule which requires that ISPs not circumvent the net neutrality rules tells us volumes about their future business plans. Petitioners boldly assert that granting the stay will not harm anyone. From a consumer perspective, the fact that ISPs think they have a right to violate our privacy, exercise market power over interconnection negotiations, and plot clever ways to undermine the open Internet makes it clear how vitally essential these rules are, and why they must go into effect on schedule.

Progress Safeguarding Student Data

In his 2015 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama outlined his plan to make sure that new educational data remains safe. Urging action, the President said that Congress needed to pass legislation that better meets the growing threat of cyberattacks and identity theft. While speaking at the Federal Trade Commission in January, the President discussed protecting both parents and children from cyberthreats. That’s why we are pleased to see Reps Luke Messer (R-IN) and Jared Polis (D-CO) answer the President’s State of the Union call to enact new protections for K-12 students’ data to ensure that classrooms can embrace technology with confidence.

The Student Digital Privacy and Parental Rights Act is an important bipartisan step, building upon existing momentum from industry leaders committed to ensuring educational data is not misused by providers or third parties, and carrying the strong endorsement of privacy advocates, the private sector, and associations representing parents and educators. The White House commends Reps Messer and Polis on their leadership in this important cause. We also note the work of Sen Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) in making this effort bicameral, and look forward to working with both chambers in the months ahead to advance legislation that provides meaningful privacy protections and helps spur more innovation in the way we educate.

Moffett: 'No discernable patterns' in the long-term value of spectrum

Despite the massive $44.9 billion collectively spent on spectrum licenses during the Federal Communications Commission's recent AWS-3 auction, Wall Street analyst Craig Moffett believes that the value of spectrum is not necessarily increasing. Instead, he said that the value of spectrum continues to remain a moving target, making it virtually impossible to predict what will happen during 2016's incentive auction of TV broadcasters' 600 MHz licenses. Spectrum "is not a simple commodity," said Craig Moffett, senior analyst of investment research firm MoffettNathanson.

Moffett said that spectrum buyers have paid a wide range of prices for spectrum during the past decade, making it difficult to forecast what spectrum licenses will sell for in the future. In one graphic that covered both auctions and secondary-market transactions, Moffett showed that per MHz-POP prices for mid-band spectrum peaked at $4.18 in 2000, fell, and then rose again to $2.53 in 2014. Meanwhile, prices for low-band spectrum hit $3.22 in 2001 and then jumped to $4.64 in 2013. "There are no discernable patterns," Moffett noted.

AT&T Completes Acquisition of Nextel Mexico

AT&T has completed its acquisition of companies operating under the name Nextel Mexico from NII Holdings, Inc., including spectrum licenses, network assets, retail stores and subscribers in Mexico, for $1.875 billion, less approximately $427 million of net debt and other adjustments. Earlier in 2015, AT&T acquired Mexican wireless provider Iusacell. AT&T will integrate Iusacell and Nextel into one company focused on bringing more choices, better service and faster mobile Internet speeds to more locations throughout Mexico. AT&T plans to create the first-ever North American Mobile Service area, which will cover more than 400 million consumers and businesses in Mexico and the United States. Thaddeus Arroyo, Chief Executive Officer for AT&T Mexico, LLC and Iusacell, will lead the combined company.

Benton

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